Explora Atacama

Excellent hotel in the Atacama

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Review

The Explora Atacama has long been setting the standard for top end accommodation in and around San Pedro. With its stark and bold design, it stands out from the simple adobe buildings of the town and the rugged beauty of the desert. Today, we are still big fans of the place, but would argue that the competition has certainly caught up with it and, what was once the only choice, is now one of four that are really up there.

Again, located just on the southern fringes of San Pedro, the Explora is quite a bit bigger than most of the other hotels in this standard and, upon first view, it is a truly impressive structure. Like the other Explora hotels, they have cleverly used lines and architectural a-symmetry to create a very memorable exterior, with a series of levels, featuring outdoor dining areas and lounges as well as far and away the best viewing point for sunset in the entire area.

Inside this impressive structure the interior and communal areas have a great feeling of space, with high windows and ceilings framing the views out to the volcanic horizon. As with all of the Exploras, they prdie themselves on their walking and riding information, and the Explora Atacama is no different. There is a entire corner of the main area dedicated to what is possible and where you can go while here.

Moving on to the rooms, these are probably our least favourite part of the property. They are comfortable, if a little stark, and all have great views out to the Andes…they have everything that you could want in fact…apart from access to the outside. For a hotel that prides themselves on their affinity with the outside, it seems a shame that you can’t relax on a balcony looking out to the views. But, when we asked about this, they proudly said that a stay in the Explora is all about getting out of your room rather than staying in it…fair enough we guess!

Anyway, the long and the short is that, with good facilities and absolutely stunning views, the Explora is still up there with the top places to stay.